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Mitsunari Ishida/Historical Information
Historical Information Ishida Mitsunari was born in the modern day Shiga Prefecture under the childhood name, Sakichi (佐吉). His father was Ishida Masatsugu, who was a painter and patron of the arts. Their clan were descendants of the Fujiwara family, an ancient aristocratic family that once controlled the land's political party. Unlike their ancestors, the Ishida never possessed mass wealth or power and were regarded as people of poor status. Mitsunari himself is generally regarded as a man of intrigue with rough manners. Though he had many friends, he was on bad terms with some daimyo who were known as good warriors. His famed historical horse plume helmet was designed to terrorize his foes. With the hairs wildly spread like a yakusha and with tall golden horns shaped like an oni, it was made with an image that could "divide the heavens". Before Sekigahara In 1574, Mitsunari served as Hashiba Hideyoshi's young page. How exactly they met remains heavily disputed. Most sources state that Hideyoshi spotted Mitsunari's talents for the tea ceremony and added him into his inner circle on the spot. A legend writes that Hideyoshi met his father whilst he was a monk and was asked to care for Mitsunari. Yet another adds that they met after the Azai's downfall. Other theories suggests that he actually became a page in 1577 and was scheming to use Hideyoshi to gain more power for his family. In either case, Mitsunari became inseparable from Hideyoshi and assisted him during battles in the Chūgoku region by overseeing Tottori Castle and Takamatsu Castle. Once Hideyoshi became ruler of the land, Mitsunari rose in ranks to become his aid. In 1585, he was appointed as inspector general Jibu-shō and was allowed to demonstrate his administrative abilities. He became one of the five commissioners (bugyo) in Hideyoshi's inner circle. When Shima Sakon approached Hideyoshi in 1586, the daimyo offered Sakon loyalty to Mitsunari. Thanks to Mitsunari's administrative command, Hideyoshi's troops had enough supplies to last through the Kyushu and Shikoku invasions. He was once given command in battle at Odawara Castle but fell victim to a water attack. This is Mitsunari's first instance of his reported incompetence in battle. When the Christian ban took place in 1596, Hideyoshi ordered a manhunt for Christian practitioners and ordered many executions for those captured. Mitsunari defied his lord by decreasing the amount of people captured in his region. When Hideyoshi learned of this, he was angered but was calmed by Mitsunari, who wasn't punished for his actions. Many reports believe that this is due to their friendship. However, others suggests that this is another instance of Mitsunari scheming to rise higher in ranks. At one point in the Korean campaign, Mitsunari served under Ukita Hideie and earned no particular achievements. A day after the Taiko passed away, Mitsunari ordered an assassination attempt on Tokugawa Ieyasu, one of the five regents (tairo) who was entrusted to care for the young Toyotomi Hideyori. Several accounts believe he ordered the deed due to jealousy; the five commissioners' influence in affairs were being fizzled out by the five regents. Regardless of the attempt to take his life, Ieyasu was determined to marry one of his offspring into the Toyotomi family, which defied the limit set in Hideyoshi's will. Since neither one of them wanted to prolong their differences, an oath between the two men was made and they continued to follow the late Taiko's wishes. After Maeda Toshiie dies, Kuroda Nagamasa, Kato Kiyomasa and others tried to attack Mitsunari in 1599. He fled to Ieyasu's residence at Fushimi Castle before returning to his residence. As a reaction to this, Ieyasu relocated to Osaka Castle later in the same year. Although Mitsunari approved the move, the attrition between him and his antagonizers were beginning to take their toll.